I can still remember seeing Shane Black’s wild and crazy genre bender Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang in the theater, at the Arclight in Hollywood, on opening weekend. I immediately fell in love with this film. It’s got great action, lots of pointed humor, terrific style from cinematographer Michael Barrett, with a satirical spin that allows for a unique tone to take over. The theater was packed and everyone loved it. There was a near constant stream of laughter, and all of the well-timed action and playful yet lethal violence was perfectly integrated into a smart, twisty screenplay that holds up remarkably well on repeated viewings. So it’ll always boggle my mind why, after premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, the film never broke out at the U.S. box office in the manner that it deserved; I don’t even think it got a fully wide release at any point during its theatrical life despite excellent critical support. It’s certainly become a recent cult item, which isn’t hard to see why. Predating the rapid A-list ascension for future Iron Man Robert Downey Jr. by three years, Black’s hugely entertaining shaggy-dog crime film involves a small-time criminal named Harry Lockhart (Downey Jr.) who accidentally stumbles into a movie audition while he’s being chased by the police after a botched robbery has left his partner shot.
A totally absurd set-up, but due to the near-whimsical way that Black stacks the deck from the opening sequence, the entire film feels pleasantly over the top if frequently quirky and always engaging. Much to his surprise, Lockhart gets the part after an impressed casting director mistakes him for a method actor, and once ensconced in Hollywood, he gets mixed up with a shady private eye (a hilarious Val Kilmer) and a sexy, potentially dangerous femme fatale (Michelle Monaghan) with ties to his past. A terrific and eclectic supporting cast including Corbin Bernsen, Rockmond Dunbar, Dash Mihok, Larry Miller, and Shannyn Sossamon all make memorable appearances. And as per usual for Black, there’s a Christmastime setting, thus continuing his tradition of writing actioners that take place over the winter holidays. This was Black flexing his witty and subversive neo-noir muscles, poking fun at a genre that he helped to shape and expand, with results that feel extremely knowing and well observed. And yet, it would take eight more years before Black would find himself back in the director’s chair, for one of the best Marvel offerings to date in Iron Man 3. But if you’re a Shane Black fan, don’t worry, because he’s about to bust loose with this summer’s hilarious looking The Nice Guys, and is hard at work with his Monster Squad co-writer Fred Dekker on The Predator. Fun tidbit: Black titled his film after film critic Pauline Kael’s 1968 film reviews and essay collection.
Podcasting Them Softly 